Woman Burned At Gas Station After Boyfriend Lights Up

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (AP) — A woman has third degree burns after her boyfriend lit a cigarette next to her as she was pumping gas at a Chattanooga service station.

Twenty-year-old Samantha Lawrence suffered second and third-degree burns to about 30 percent of her body, mostly her torso and arms, according to a news release from the Chattanooga Fire Department.

Investigators ruled the May 26 fire accidental, but the boyfriend, Derek Seretean was arrested at the scene on an unrelated warrant, according to Chattanooga police.

Lawrence remains hospitalized at the Joseph M. Still Burn Center in Augusta, Ga.

Fire department spokesman Bruce Garner told the Chattanooga Times Free Press that National Fire Protection Association figures show more than 5,000 fires and explosions happened at gas stations each year between 2004 and 2008.